NASA will likely venture out into the universe on a slightly tighter budget in 2015, but the agency is still putting its focus on sending humans to space.

More than half of NASA's proposed $17.5 billion budget would go toward human exploration operations, the agency announced Tuesday, shortly after President Barack Obama unveiled his own 2015 budget proposal, which describes his vision for NASA.

"This budget also continues to build on our nation's record of breathtaking and compelling science discoveries and achievements in space," NASA administrator Charles Bolden said in a statement, "with science missions that will reach far into our solar system, reveal unknown aspects of our universe and provide critical knowledge about our home planet."

One of the keys to NASA's ambition to send humans deeper into space is new heavy lift rocket and Orion capsule, a crew-carrying vessel. The rocket, which is currently under development, is designed "to take astronauts farther into the solar system than we have ever gone before," NASA said, and it will be a vital step in NASA's goal to send humans to an asteroid by 2025 and to Mars in the 2030s.

NASA also plans to use the funds to fulfill Obama's promise to extend funding for the International Space Station, which Bolden described as a "springboard to deep space," for at least four years through 2024.

In addition to money for exploration missions, the proposal includes nearly $5 billion for scientific research. NASA said that money will allow it to hit its target of a 2018 launch for the James Webb Space Telescope, said to be 100 times as powerful as its predecessor, the Hubble. Bolden called the telescope "the most incredible astrophysics instrument that humanity has ever seen."

Detecting asteroids that may be hazardous to Earth is a prominent part of Obama's proposal for NASA, which his budget called "high priority" mission. NASA is currently working on a plan to "identify, capture and redirect" an asteroid.

The search for extraterrestrial life is also part of NASA's proposal. NASA said it hopes to begin to form a plan to explore Europa, one of Jupiter's moons. In recent years, scientists discovered what they believe to be geysers on Europa's surface. These geysers could provide clues to whether Europa's vast underground oceans are harboring life.

NASA CFO Beth Robinson called the Europa mission "very challenging" and said the agency has set aside $50 million to start planning the mission, which they hope to launch in the mid-2020s.

Bolden emphasized that NASA's proposed budget is in line with the 2010 NASA Authorization Act, a bipartisan law that establishes a "commitment to human exploration goals."

Congress passed a $17.6 billion budget for NASA in 2014, slightly less than the $17.7 billion budget Obama recommended.

In addition to the proposed $17.5 billion, NASA has proposed an addition $886 million in spending under Obama's proposed Opportunity, Growth and Security Initiative, which the Obama administration described as a "roadmap" provided to Congress for additional spending considerations.

You can view NASA's full 2015 budget presentation here, which illustrates the proposal's highlights and provides more details on how the funds will be split up between missions and initiatives.

Ouadane, Mauritania - Jan. 16

Mashable
is a global, multi-platform media and entertainment company. Powered by its own proprietary technology, Mashable is the go-to source for tech, digital culture and entertainment content for its dedicated and influential audience around the globe.